For princesses who don't mind playing a little rough with the boys!

Earth Hour

I know it’s not a holiday, and it’s only for an hour, so time is limited, but I just wondered if anyone else out there has any traditions for this day.

Our family does.

We began this little tradition when Earth Hour began in 2007, and the kids still enjoy it to this day:

We shut off as much as possible. Electronics, computers, lights, we go dark. We light a whole lot of candles, use flashlights if necessary, and we even have a wind-up radio (a bit of a pain if you ask me but whatever!).

Then we pull out a board game or two and set it up in our candle-lit kitchen and we play together, as a family.

Often, we go over the hour because we are having so much fun, and it’s almost a shame to turn the lights back on again, but we thoroughly enjoy the time together.

As kids get older, though, it’s tougher and tougher for them to put the electronics down on the best of days, much less on the day of Earth Hour, but they do know there is a greater purpose, so we usually don’t have too many problems with getting them to give it up for one tiny little hour.

What I do NOT recommend is playing a game like Monopoly (that game is NEVER a short one) or PayDay (which is a game we love but have given up for the reason I’m about to explain)…

Board games that deal with handling play money, or writing anything down, or hundreds of tiny game pieces, none of that works very well in dimly lit situations… make a Family Game Night and play those more in-depth games then.

Aim for simplicity in your game choice. For example, for us tonight, it will be Uno or Sorry…

Another plus for your Earth Hour evening: SNACKS! Everything is better with snacks!

Little kids will LOVE this, because it’s almost like a party, and kids LOVE parties! Make it as festive and exciting as possible, and if you DO have small children, skip the real candles and go for flameless candles. Keep those little fingers and faces safe! Have some flashlights and fresh batteries ready!

Lastly, make sure to mark it on your calendar, and remind that kids that Earth Hour is coming up. It builds the excitement if they’ve experienced a fun Earth Hour evening in the past.

I totally missed earth hour this year. I guess we can do it any day, though, it’s just fun knowing that people all over the world are participating too. You have some good ideas on how to spend the time.